


Never Leave Your Front Door Open

by rin-a-tin-tin (blanched)



Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Post-The Raven King, cabeswater is alive, cabeswater is still there, overprotective ronan, they need rest
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-13
Updated: 2018-07-17
Packaged: 2019-02-01 21:39:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12713460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blanched/pseuds/rin-a-tin-tin
Summary: Takes place after the Raven King, only Cabeswater never "died" or vanished from Henrietta. It is still very much alive and very active.Only, something else is too, and it wants Cabeswater dead. But it isn't just Cabeswater's life on the line anymore.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This timeline is a little wonky, and not exactly like the book.  
> So this is after the EVENTS of the Raven King, but the Gangsey is all still in the beginning of their senior year.  
> Can't have any of my babes going off to college in the middle of the action ;P

     The front door to Monmouth opened slowly, the creaking of the old metal overtaking the voices that came from within the main room.

     The respective voices- Gansey and Henry Cheng- momentarily silenced from what sounded like a debate as they looked up to see who entered.

     “Hey, Adam!” Gansey said cheerily, standing up from his spot on the floor amid a mountain of books. “I thought you had work tonight?”

     Adam almost snorted at that; he had work _every night_ , though he was grateful Gansey seemed to always forget that. Instead, he gave a polite nod to Henry, who still maintained his prone position on the floor with ancient looking books opened under each elbow. Henry nodded back and returned to his studies- whatever they were.

     “Boyd left the shop early tonight,” Adam explained to Gansey. “I think he was sick or something. He doesn’t trust anyone but himself to supervise, so he just closed up shop for today.”

     Gansey grinned at that, his inner mother clearly pleased that Adam didn’t have to suffer through another all-nighter to finish his school work.

     “Well that’s great! If you want, you can help us search through these texts to find more information about Cabeswater,” he offered.

     Adam frowned at that, suspicious of what Gansey was looking into. Does he know… _No. He couldn’t._

     He took a small step forward to get a better look at the books the two other boys surrounded themselves in, but found that many of them had faded covers or no inscriptions at all.

     “What exactly are you trying to find?” Adam asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

     Gansey pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and picked up the nearest book to him, which was teetering dangerously on top of a precarious stack of similar looking novels. He held up the faded red cover as if that meant anything to Adam and said confidently, “There’s always a river.”

     Adam glanced to Henry, hoping he could make some sense out of the vague shit Gansey just sprouted, but to his dismay found Henry nodding solemnly at the floor, like what he just heard was extremely profound.

     “What exactly,” Adam started, suddenly feeling more exhausted from a 30 second conversation with Gansey than he was from an entire school day and half of a work day. “Do you mean by that?”

     “Well,” Gansey began, almost like he was hoping for a chance to explain, “Exactly what I meant. There is always a river. Or, at least a major body of water. Egypt had the Nile, Rome had the Tiber, Mesopotamia had the Euphrates. So, Henry and I were thinking, what is the river of Cabeswater? There must be one, right?”

     Adam stared blankly at the two other boys, not seeing any significance in what they were saying.

     “Ronan dreamt the whole layout of Cabeswater, Gansey. He decided what it would look like, bodies of water and everything. I mean, for God’s sake there’s a lake of acid in that forest.”

     Gansey seemed undeterred, “Yes, but there are things about Cabeswater that Ronan didn’t control! He gave Cabeswater a form, but its existence-“

     Adam stopped Gansey there with a hand.

     “I’m really sorry, Gansey, but I’m not in the mood to talk about abstract stuff right now. Tomorrow I promise I’ll listen but none of this is making sense to me right now.”

     Gansey looked a little forlorn, but nodded understandingly.

     “I’ll hold you to that.”

     Adam smiled softly and made his way to the tattered couch in the center of the room. He collapsed into the cushions, which were noticeably softer than his bed at St. Agnes. Debating whether or not to turn on the television in front of him, he turned back to where the other boys were in their mountain of books.

     “Hey, Gansey?” he asked.

     Gansey’s head popped up from behind a stack of books, glasses slightly askew on his face.

     “Yeah?”

     “I saw Ronan’s car wasn’t here when I came in… do you know where he is?”

     “I had to send him off a few hours ago with a grocery list; he was lounging around all day here, and he kept taking these books to make a house for Chainsaw.”

     Adam snorted. That sounded like Ronan.

    He was about to slouch back down into the cushions of the couch when he noticed Gansey was still looking at him, looking very much like he wanted to say something.

     “What?” he asked, slightly unnerved.

     “Well, it’s just,” Gansey started, looking a little surprised that he was called out. “I just wanted to ask you- I mean, I know you said it before, but I just want to make sure. You haven’t been hearing anything from Cabeswater, have you?”

     Although he was somewhat expecting it to be brought up, the question still struck Adam cold. Each time it was addressed, he felt as if his friends were onto him and his lie, like they saw right through him. He gave himself a moment to prepare himself, sighed regrettably, and shook his head.

     “Like I told you before, when Cabeswater died, it broke off its connection with me. Even when it came back, the connection never did- just like Ronan. I haven’t gotten any word from Cabeswater since that day.”

     He felt horrible lying to his friends, but this was necessary. Ever since the incident with Adam attacking Ronan- something he still gets nightmares about- he felt like the connection with Cabeswater scared his friends more than comforted them. So, after Cabeswater resurrected, along with Gansey in the streets of Henrietta, Adam pretended like he didn’t feel the tingle in his hands as the life of Cabeswater returned to his fingertips, or how the consciousness of it flowed alongside his own once again. He pretended like he didn’t see the heart of the forest every time he closed his eyes, or how he always heard the rustling leaves in the distance like white noise. When Cabeswater resurrected, it broke off from Ronan, no longer requiring his ability to maintain itself. Ronan could still take items out of his dreams, only now the power came from him alone- not Cabeswater. No one knew how exactly it got the power to become independent, but Ronan seemed happy to no longer have to deal with the forest. So, if it so easily broke its connection with Ronan- who was the person who brought it into existence in the first place- why did it not do the same with Adam, who only served as a bridge between the real world and Cabeswater?

     Regardless, he pretended like he lost the connection- when in reality he carried on his duties as the hands and eyes of Cabeswater just as he did before, only without the help of anyone else. He couldn’t bring his friends back into the life of Cabeswater, seeing as it got Gansey killed and very nearly killed all of them multiple times. He vowed to carry on his duties by himself for as long as he was able, and he was handling it very well on his own.

     Gansey nodded serenely at Adam’s answer, seemingly pleased with it.

     “That’s good. I have no idea what is going on with Cabeswater now that it has come back, but something about it just doesn’t feel right. I mean, why break off a connection with both its creator and the outside world? And how did it suddenly become so independent? Even Blue’s family has no idea what had changed, and that’s always a sign something is up.”

     Adam nodded, humming like he was thinking hard, but in reality, he was overcome with guilt. Even the psychics lost their “connection” with the ley lines; or, at least, they have become weaker than before. What was going on with Cabeswater, and why did it need Adam? It’s not like his connection with it has proven to be vital since the revival; he has only visited the forest once since that day, and that was only to check if everything was as it had been before, and it was. There were no urgent messages sent to him, no visions, no dreams, nothing. It had been quite unnerving, but after a few weeks, it had begun to feel normal once more.

     Slouching back down in the cushions, Adam pondered some more about Cabeswater and its many mysteries. He let his mind wander until it came to the pale boy with the Aglionby uniform and the mark on his cheek.

      _Noah._

     Adam missed Noah, as did the rest of the gang. However, their mourning feels distant and vague, as if it had happened many years ago. Perhaps it was Cabeswater in his mind keeping the memory of Noah and his sacrifice so present and prominent, but he ended up thinking about Noah an awful lot. He appeared very often in his dreams, as memories from Adam’s consciousness, memories of Noah when he was within the forest, or – worst of all- memories of Noah being murdered on the ley lines by his old friend Barrington Whelk. There have been many nights where Adam awoke with murderous intent, only to remember that Whelk was already dead, and it was very much his fault.

     He too often awoke in the middle of the night after once again witnessing Noah’s or Whelk’s deaths, and too often, Ronan could not be there to give him comfort. Too often he didn’t return to bed where he would undoubtedly be met with those scenes once more.

     Without realizing it, Adam had risen from the couch and made his way across the wide-open space to come to a halt in front of Noah’s closed bedroom door.

     The silence around him was heavy, the debate between Henry and Gansey growing increasingly distant and muffled to his good ear, the familiar rustling of Cabeswater in his deaf ear. The atmosphere changed and became charged, as if a lightning storm was approaching; it seemed as if everything was holding its breath, waiting for something.

     Adam saw his own hand reach forward and grab the doorknob to Noah’s door, and as soon as his rough skin came into contact with the cool metal, he wasn’t in Monmouth anymore.

    **He was suddenly in the forest- Cabeswater. The air around Adam seemed to cling to him, causing fog to surround him, which made the silence ever more imposing. Sniffing, Adam got a whiff of smoke. It was coming from nearby, it seemed. A forest fire? In Cabeswater? Adam didn’t know if that was even possible, but he wouldn’t put it past Cabeswater- stranger things have happened.**

**The smell of smoke got stronger and more potent, despite Adam not having moved a step in any direction. He couldn’t see well past the fog that was surrounding him, but he didn’t see any flames among the blurred trees.**

**The heat followed, burning the backs of his hands at first. Adam gasped at the burning sensation, and went to move, but found his feet rooted to the forest floor, like a tree. Holding his hands as close as he could to his eyes, he checked for any visible burns. Both of his hands were charred and peeling, severe burns going from his fingertips to his forearms. His eyes began to water and his breathing was growing thick and labored.**

**His hands… his hands… the skin was burning off his hands from the unseen fire. His whole body began to burn, and Adam wanted so badly to scream, but found he couldn’t open his mouth. Did he have a mouth? He couldn’t feel it.**

**He couldn’t feel anything.**

**Suddenly, the flames overcame him and he splintered, falling to the forest floor in fractured and burnt pieces.**

     Adam’s eyes flew open, and he gasped for breath. He was in Noah’s room, laying on his side on the floor, with no memory of how he got there.

     Taking deep breaths and calming himself down from whatever vision he had just experienced, Adam held his hands up to his face to see if the burns were still there. Despite the throbbing pain he still felt, there was no visible sign of any damage done to him.

     Sitting up, he rested his back against Noah’s unused bed and held his head in his hands, trying to figure out what just happened. This was Cabeswater sending a message, that much was obvious. But never before did Cabeswater harm Adam to get a point across. Was it that important? Or was this Cabeswater’s way of showing him what was going on within the forest? He had to find out, that much was for sure.

      _So much for hanging out with Ronan_ , he thought ruefully as he stood up from Noah’s floor and exited the room, trying to act normal.

     He had no idea how long he was in Noah’s room, but he wasn’t about to ask Gansey and Henry, who were still talking nonstop over the countless texts. Instead, he just walked past them and toward the front door to the factory, hoping to slip out unnoticed.

     No such luck, it seemed.

     “Adam, where are you off to?” Gansey called from his spot on the floor.

     “Uhm, just- I have to, uh, go somewhere,” Adam stuttered, not able to come up with a decent excuse on the fly.

     Gansey frowned. “Are you alright, Adam? You look kind of pale.”

     “I’m fine,” Adam responded, a little clipped. He took his keys out of his pants pocket and left without another word to the two boys.

     After crawling inside his piece-of-shit car, Adam took a moment to rest his head against the steering wheel and take a moment to calm down before taking off. He knows the way he just left wasn’t exactly polite, but this was evidently an emergency, and Cabeswater was still a secret only he knew about.

  _I’ll apologize later_ , he resolved. _After I come back, hopefully over some pizza._

     With that in mind, he turned the key in the ignition to have the engine roll over once… twice… and it died. Adam sucked in a breath of frustration and tried again, and again, and again. Finally, when it was obvious his car wasn’t going to start without being jumped, Adam groaned and got out, slamming his door in anger.

     “You could take my car, if you’d like,” Adam heard a voice call from the entrance of Monmouth. He turned and saw Gansey standing in the doorway with his keys in hand, held out like an offer. Adam was torn between being mortified that Gansey watched that ordeal, and grateful that he offered his own ride so quickly, without knowing exactly where he was going. Just as Adam opened his mouth to thank Gansey for allowing him to borrow the Pig, he suddenly thought otherwise.

     The Pig quite literally came out of Cabeswater, from the power of Cabeswater. If Adam was to bring that car into or near the rogue forest, he had no idea what could possibly happen to it or Cabeswater. The last thing he needed was for the Pig to vanish from existence, with no excuse to give Gansey. He wouldn’t even know how the forest would take something from the past being brought back into its territory, now that Cabeswater functioned on its own.

     There was no way he would risk that.

     “No, thank you Gansey,” he shook his head sadly. “I have my bike in my trunk just in case this kinda thing happens. I’ll be fine.”

     Gansey frowned so deeply, Adam saw the crease in between his eyes from where he was standing.

     “Adam, it’s really no big deal. It’s starting to get cold outside; you don’t have to take your bike to… wherever you’re going.”

     “Where I’m going,” Adam said while popping the trunk on his car. “It’s for the best to not have a car like yours around.”

     With that, Adam removed his bike, slammed the hood, and was off, pedaling away, leaving Gansey baffled in the doorway of Monmouth, keys to his car still held out like Adam might turn around and grab them.


	2. Ronan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ronan's POV as he returns to Monmouth.

     Ronan swung open the door to Monmouth with such force, the handle clanged against the wall, startling the two boys who sit on the floor.

     “You shit heads are still nerding out?” he asked, arms full with grocery bags filled with dubious items from the nearby grocery store. He unceremoniously dumped them all on the ground, not bothering to unpack the contents.

     Gansey looked up from his work and eyed the bags warily, before pushing his glasses up his nose and sighing.

     “We’re not really getting very far,” he said slowly. “Especially now that Cabeswater is an equal mystery to us all.”

     Ronan grunted, thinking not so fondly of all the times he’s had with Cabeswater.

    _The time he was attacked by his own night terror and Gansey was convinced he tried to kill himself._

_The time where he found out his mother and brother were just a product of dreams._

_The time where he witnessed Noah’s killer get trampled by the creatures of the forest._

_The time he almost drowned in a lake of acid._

_The time Adam almost strangled him to death._

_Yeah, Ronan was glad to put that behind him._

     Speaking of which…

     “Where’s the dork? Saw his shitty ass car parked in the lot” Ronan asked, looking around the room to see if Adam was tucked away in some corner sleeping. Adam never got enough sleep, so the rare times he was able to see Adam sleep felt like a blessing to him. He didn’t see his boyfriend anywhere in the room, and flopped down on the couch that Adam was laying on not even a half hour before, unbeknownst to him.

     Ronan would never admit it out loud, but he missed Adam. He always missed Adam. When they were apart for more than a second, he missed him. He was the one bit of sanity Ronan had in the world, but at the same time, he was the craziest thing about it. Adam Parrish was a wonderful collection of rational thoughts and sound logic stuffed into an impossible being of other worldly abilities. Adam Parrish was a galaxy of his own, above, beyond, and separate from the rest of the world. Ronan wanted nothing more than to be a part of it, and with every step in that direction, he felt a thrill of accomplishment. Every barrier he crossed to get closer to Adam felt like he has begun to unravel the mysteries of the universe; every time, it seems as if the world makes more sense.

     Of course, none of this was ever vocalized. He tried his best to let Adam know his feelings through his gentle touches, his small gestures, and his occasional texts (he still will always hate his phone, though). The only person that ever really seemed to get how Ronan felt about Adam was Noah, another living (well, not really) impossibility. It was bizarre how Noah knew how everyone felt, even if they didn’t yet know how they felt. He knew about Ronan’s crush on Adam before Ronan was willing to admit it, and he tactfully remained silent, and for that Noah will always have his respect. Everyone missed Noah, but refused to acknowledge it, almost as if they were waiting for the moment for him to walk in and casually sit on the arm rest of the couch like he used to, or play with Blue’s hair.

     After Noah was gone for good, Ronan dreamt of a snow globe, much like the one Noah shattered in a convenience store months ago. He has no clue why this memory stuck with him, but there it was- in his dream. He didn’t even mean to pick up the shattered remains of the sparkling globe and put it back together. He didn’t intend to take it out of his dream. And yet, there it was, sitting on his counter in his room. It was a small scene, but Ronan could never make out what it was past all the snow and glitter, perpetually falling like a sparkly blizzard. He looked at it every single day, hoping he could see what the scene was, and why it was so important. There was just too much glitter.

     Ronan snapped himself back to reality when he realized that both Gansey and Henry were looking at him expectantly.

     “What?” he said, rather than asked.

     Gansey signed. “I said, he ran out a few minutes ago. Any idea where he could have gone?”

     Ronan sat up, not quite alarmed, but certainly intrigued. Today was Thursday, so what is Adam’s car doing here? He works from 5-11 on Thursdays. Why didn’t he notice that as soon as he walked in?

     “Why is he not at work?” he asked, cautiously, while thinking _Why did he leave with his bike?_

     This time Henry spoke up, yawning as he did so.

     “He said some fella called ‘Boyd’ was sick, so his shift ended early.”

     “When did he come by here?”

     “Oh, probably like… 8-ish? Right, Gansey?”

     “Mmm hmm,” Gansey hummed resting back down on his elbows and becoming once more absorbed in his book.

     He was oblivious to Ronan, who was trying to figure out everything without showing it on his face.

      _Adam came by? Was he looking for Ronan? Probably. But then why did he leave? He should have known that Ronan would be right back? Was he really that impatient? Why was his car still parked in the lot?_

     “Is his car broken?” Ronan asked sitting up in the couch, no longer comfortable. He knew he sounded like an overbearing mother, but with the things that they have dealt with together, it was better to be safe than sorry- especially with the enigma that is Adam Parrish.

     Gansey turned his head to answer, but Henry spoke over him, standing up to stretch and making his way over to the abandoned grocery bags to look for a snack.

     “Yeah, it wouldn’t start, so he grabbed his bike and took off down the road. I guess wherever he was going couldn’t have been too far. Or, at least, I hope it wasn’t. It’s starting to get cold out.”

     This raised a lot of red flags in Ronan’s mind. Every time Adam had disappeared on his shitty ass bike, it was either bad business or Cabeswater business, and Ronan thought they were both out of that business. He watched Henry rustle through a plastic bag until he found a bag of pretzels, then loudly open them and scoop out a handful.

     “What, were you too scared to let him drive your car, Dick? I crashed it, remember? Not him.”

     Gansey gave a small frown from his spot on the floor, remembering that event unhappily.

     “Well,” Gansey cleared his throat. “He said something along the lines of ‘Where I’m going, its best to not have a car like that’ or something. He left in a huge rush, though; I wish he would have just taken the Pig. I mean it runs fine now that- “

     “He said that?” Ronan interrupting, his pulse exploding in his chest.

     “I- yes, that’s what he told me. Why?”

     Ronan didn’t grace that question with an answer. Instead, he flung himself off the couch and ran toward the door, a sense of urgency overcoming him.

     “Woah, woah, woah!” Henry exclaimed, stepping boldly in the way of Ronan and the door and holding up his hands, one still filled with a handful of pretzels, and the other somehow had Ronan’s keys in them.

     “Gimme the fucking keys,” Ronan growled, towering menacingly over the smaller boy.

     Henry, on his part, didn’t appear intimidated by Ronan- only intrigued.

     “What’s got you in such a rush you can’t explain what’s going on?” he asked, sticking the hand with Ronan’s keys behind his back. He held out his other hand to offer some pretzels, and Ronan was prepared to murder him right then and there.

     As Ronan was about to tackle Henry and wrestle his keys out of his hands, Gansey stepped in between them, his back to Henry and his eyes full of concern.

     “Ronan,” he said, voice quiet and serious. “What’s going on?”

     Ronan, struggling to remain rational, took a deep breath and let it out, none of his anger and urgency leaving him.

     Ignoring the presence of Henry, Ronan looked down at Gansey, annoyed that he allowed Adam to leave on his own.

     “Dick,” he hissed. “Adam left by himself on his bike. You offer a ride. He refuses. What does this sound like to you?”

     Gansey stared at Ronan, uncomprehendingly.

     “I- I don’t…”

     “Gansey think!” Ronan shouted, taking a step forward, Gansey taking a small step back. “Where has Adam gone before where having a car like yours, or a car like mine makes matters worse? Where would he be that it would be safest to arrive on a bike rather than in a fancy ass car?”

     Gansey went still, then his face drained of color.

     “Oh… no, he-“

     “What?” Henry chimed in, still holding Ronan’s keys out.

     “That’s right,” Ronan growled, pushing past Gansey and grabbing the keys out of Henry’s hand before making haste to the door. “Adam went home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pretty short chapter! Yikes, I meant to combine this one with the next one, but then I decided "fuck it".  
> Posted separately because I too love a good cliffhanger.


	3. Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ronan, Gansey, and Henry head out to find Adam.

     “I’m calling Blue, she needs to know,” Gansey announced as he, Ronan, and Henry ran down the stairs to the lot, where the Pig, Ronan’s BMW, and Adam’s ambiguously ugly car sat.

 

     Ronan didn’t bother gracing that with a comment. He didn’t care if Blue knew. For fuck’s sake, he didn’t care if the god damn President of the United States knew; he just cared that they got to Adam in time.

 

     “Why the fuck,” he mumbled to himself angrily, fumbling with his keys to unlock his car. “Would he go back there?”

 

     His mind went through all the terrible possibilities. Adam and his parents were never civil, that much was obvious. He had a permanent reminder of that every time someone spoke on his right side. Ronan had seen some of the shit that Adam lived with on a daily basis first-hand. He saw what Robert Parrish did to his own son, and he heard the threats he made toward him with his gun. The Parrish household was a nightmare through and through. However, the last time Adam and his father had seen each other face to face was in a more civil setting, where in front of a court room, Robert Parrish lied to the judge about the “familial issues” Adam had at home and was let off with a warning, while Adam was left without a home. Why would he ever need to go back there? Ronan made sure Adam knew that anything he left behind in that shit-hole he would go and pick up for him, or purchase for him a new one; there was no way Ronan would ever let his boyfriend go back there, especially alone. More so after what Adam told him that day in the Barns.

 

     And just like that, as Ronan turned the key in the ignition of his BMW, he was thrown back into the memory.

 

…

 

     It was a while after the trial, and Adam had been living in St. Agnes for a decent amount of time. He had stopped fighting Ronan every time he tried to help, and their relationship was starting to develop. Nonetheless, Ronan watched him like a hawk for any signs that something was up, because with Adam Parrish, you would never know otherwise. Both Adam and Ronan were experts at internalizing shit and were still struggling to open up to each other- especially when it involved either of their parents. Family was a dangerously sensitive subject for both of them, so they typically contented themselves avoiding it. However, this day was different and this time Adam didn’t make Ronan guess at what was eating at him.

 

     “Hey Ro,” he started quietly, as if he was hoping Ronan was already asleep leaning against the stack of hay overlooking the Barns. When Ronan looked up, almost alarmed by the softness and trepidation in Adam’s voice, he saw Adam’s face go through a complicated set of emotions before landing on one, which appeared to Ronan to be determination. Whatever he was trying to say was obviously taking a lot out of him. Ronan sat up to mirror Adam and brought his whole attention to him, then watched as he took in a deep breath.

 

     “My dad came by yesterday.”

 

     Ronan felt cold. He was expecting so many things- steeling himself to be ready for anything. Anything except that. He didn’t know how to respond for a few seconds, but once the familiar fire of anger started to settle in, he couldn’t keep his mouth closed.

 

      “Why the fuck was that fucking monster at the church?” he spluttered out, thinking of a million things he would to do that prick if given a minute alone with him.

 

     “I’m not exactly sure,” Adam admitted. “I don’t know if it was an intimidation tactic, or an attempt at an apology, but it didn’t amount to very much.” Adam must have been stressed about this, despite his words, because he didn’t even think to smother his Henrietta accent.

 

     “What the fuck did he say to you?”

 

     Adam shifted uncomfortably. “A bunch of nonsense really. It almost sounded like he thought this was just a phase and I would go back home soon.”

 

     “That place isn’t your home, Adam,” Ronan reminded him with aggression. He would never let Adam see that place as a home ever again- not as long as he was around.

 

     Adam nodded absently, staring at his crossed legs. “I know that. But I feel like there was something else to that, y’know? Like he had something else to say but changed his mind.”

 

     Ronan wasn’t convinced. “Just promise me that if he ever comes by again, if you ever hear from him again, if you ever fucking see him again, you’ll tell me, okay? I’ll even pick up the phone for you, I just need to know.”

 

      Adam peered over at Ronan out of the corner of his eye, as if testing to see if the promise was real. Then, apparently judging it to be so, he smiled softly, in the way that Ronan would destroy worlds for. Adam held up a hand, with his bony, calloused, freckled, and beautiful knuckles facing Ronan expectantly. Ronan lifted a hand and in response was given a light fist bump.

 

     “Promise,” Adam said, leaning back into the haystack.

 

….

 

     Ronan was thrown harshly back into the present, his hands gripping the steering wheel of the BMW so tightly that his fingers had long since gone white. Gansey was in the passenger seat, talking avidly into his phone- no doubt to Blue- and Henry was behind Ronan, looking important in the lush back seat. Ronan glanced at Henry in his mirror and saw Henry staring directly back at Ronan, somewhat oddly.

 

     “What,” Ronan said savagely.

 

     Henry cocked an eyebrow at Ronan, then looked out his window. Ronan glanced out the window and realized that he hadn’t put the car into drive yet. They’ve all been sitting in the Monmouth lot wasting time when Ronan should have been going after his masochist boyfriend. After cursing loudly, and receiving a look of disgust from Gansey (who quickly apologized into the phone), he quickly put the car into drive and peeled out of the lot, heading directly toward Adam’s old home.

 

    “Okay, we’ll see you soon. Bye, Blue.” Gansey hung up the phone and turned to Ronan, who was still white-knuckling the steering wheel as they sped down the dark highway.

 

    “Ronan, we need to pick up Blue.”

 

      “No fucking way. Her house is in the opposite fucking direction of Adam’s. I’m not wasting time picking up the cockroach.”

 

     “Hey,” Gansey warned in an uncharacteristically serious way. “Listen. Ronan, we have to. I was just on the phone with her and she said that around the time that Adam left, Calla received a strange message- or signal- about this. We need Blue to explain this.”

 

     “We don’t fucking need anyone, Dick,” Ronan growled as he hit 80 passing a sign that posted 45 mph. “We’re getting Adam before he does anything stupid, then you can decode this shit in your free time, okay?”

 

     “No, Ronan, we need Blue! She said Calla was shaken by this message she got. It looks bad, and it involves Adam. I think there’s more to this than Adam simply going home. What if this involves Cabeswater? It’s been so silent lately, maybe it’s starting to wake up.”

 

      “So why waste the time to pick her up if we already know that?” Ronan retorted.

 

     “Why waste the time to go somewhere if that’s not truly where he’ll be?”

 

    While Ronan hesitated to come up with a rebuttal, Henry chimed in from the backseat, leaning forward between Ronan and Gansey.

 

    “Why waste this much time bickering over where to go, all the while heading in the wrong direction?”

 

    Ronan clenched his teeth. He hated this. He hated this. God, he hated this.

 

      _Adam, hold on for a little bit_ , he thought to himself. _Don’t do anything too stupid._

 

      “Fuck!” Ronan grunted, then brought the BMW to a full 180 spin on the (thankfully clear) road to turn around the way they came. Gansey gasped and clung onto the handle of the door, while Henry- who was still leaning forward- was thrown sideways, hitting both Gansey’s seat as well as the back-seat car door with ample force. Henry let out a string of expletives, rubbing his shoulder, but Ronan paid him no mind. He gunned it until they were going easily 90 mph, the roar of the engine the only sound in the otherwise silent night.

 

     He didn’t take his foot off the gas until they were in front of 300 Fox Way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So sorry I haven't written in, like, forever.  
> .  
> I didn't abandon this- no way! I actually FORGOT where I was going with this fic. It wasn't until this evening when I found a journal of notes I made that I found the notes I had for this fic!  
> .  
> So it shall continue!


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